Riddles That You Speak
by revivingophelia
Summary: Sometimes you find what you need the most in the places you least expected... Spoilers through the 2/20/12 RAW and 2/21/12 live SmackDown. Eve Torres, CM Punk. Featuring Kofi Kingston, Brie Bella, Kaitlyn, and R-Truth.
1. Chapter 1

Title: Riddles That You Speak

Author: Karen U/revivingophelia

Pairing/Character: Eve Torres, CM Punk, Kofi Kingston, Brie Bella, Kaitlyn, R-Truth

Disclaimer: no one you recognize belongs to me

Rating: PG-13/T

Summary: sometimes you find what you need the most in the places you least expected...

Spoilers: 2/20/12 RAW, 2/21/12 SmackDown

Warnings: language, violence, adult situations

Author's Note - Title comes from the Taylor Swift song 'Ours'... My titles often come from songs, but I usually remove the quotes before I post the fic at this site. This time, I decided to leave it.

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_[ ... and it's not theirs to speculate if it's wrong... your hands are tough but they are where mine belong... I'll fight their doubt and give you faith with this song for you... cause I love the gap between your teeth... and I love the riddles that you speak... and any snide remarks from my father about your tattoos will be ignored... cause my heart is yours...-Taylor Swift, Ours... ]_

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Part One

He tugged the strap of his bag higher on his shoulder, the man frowning slightly as he headed toward the space he was told the rental car would be... A rental car that he would be sharing with the diva he was teamed up with for this little excursion. They were visiting a children's hospital later that day, and a military base the following morning. After that? They were on their own until the live events for the weekend, and the WWE was paying for their accommodations. Not a bad deal, really, aside from the fact that he wouldn't be at home at all this week. Of course, he'd volunteered to do this, as had the diva he'd be working with. Too bad they hadn't told him who it would be... His hope was for someone like Lilian, because she was cool to hang around with, liked music - even some of the stuff he listened to - and she'd probably be willing to help him if he wanted to learn more Spanish. But it wasn't Lilian Garcia that was standing at the car waiting for him.

It was Eve Torres.

She stood there silently near the trunk of the car, the diva's expression hidden by the oversized sunglasses that she wore. He couldn't help the slight hesitation in his step at the sight of her, but then he continued to move forward, watching as Eve popped the trunk of the car for him, her things already carefully placed within and arranged in such a way as to take up as little space as possible. Apparently, she didn't go by the 'just toss it all in' school of thought that he did.

He jerked slightly as she reached out to take one of his bags from him and carefully place it inside the trunk, obviously planning to arrange his things as carefully as she had arranged her own. Since it seemed like she wanted to do it, he let her, the man frowning slightly as he looked at the diva. "Didn't expect to see you here," he said after a moment, and Eve turned to look at him, using a finger to edge her sunglasses down just enough that he could see those gorgeous eyes of hers.

"Surprised and disappointed?" she questioned, and he frowned at her.

"I never said that. I just... I know this is strictly voluntary-"

"And I volunteered," Eve said with a shrug, starting to reach for his suitcase, but he shook his head.

"Just point where I should put it, since you're so damned organized," he muttered, and she gestured.

"It will fit best there. And slide the least," she told him, then looked over at him, her gaze flicking to the arm that Daniel Bryan had been working on in their match the night before. An arm that was still pretty damn sore. "I'm driving." The look she gave him made him think that Eve expected him to argue that point, but he just wasn't in the mood.

"Fine with me. I get to pick the music."

She shrugged. "Fine," the diva said, closing up the trunk again now that their things were stowed away. As she headed for the driver's seat, she looked across the top of the car at him. "Just out of curiosity, since you obviously didn't expect me... Who were you expecting?"

"Seems like the kind of thing Lilian would do. With the visit to the military base and all. She was an army brat, right?"

"Right. And she did sign up. Remember, there are four groups. She's just one of the other groups."

"What other divas signed up? Just out of curiosity," he told her, and she arched a brow at him.

"Trying to see who else you could have gotten instead of being stuck with me?" Eve questioned, and he actually flinched slightly at that.

"I didn't say that."

"You thought it, Punk," she told him, and CM Punk sighed.

"I was just wondering."

"Nikki and Brie," Eve said, watching as his brows lifted in surprise. Her lips curved in what could only be considered a smirk. "What? Did you expect it to be some other divas? The nice girl brigade, perhaps? Well, Kelly has traffic school since she can't seem to stop running red lights and ignoring stop signs, and Alicia wasn't willing to give up her days off. Lilian, Brie, Nikki, and I were. To be fair, I think AJ wanted to do it, but she was out with her injuries when the arrangements were made and then Daniel Bryan talked her out of offering to go anyway. Do you know who the other guys are?"

CM Punk cleared his throat. "I heard Ted DiBiase was signed up. Other than that, I'm not sure. Who knows... Maybe Cena's going," he said, not sure why he brought up the name, maybe just to get a reaction out of her, and her expression immediately closed off and turned icy enough to give him a chill. Eve arched a brow at him.

"I sincerely doubt that. I imagine he's too busy with the whole Daytona 500 thing, not to mention all the time he needs to spend writing poop jokes about the Rock for this coming Monday," the diva said, and he couldn't help it; he smiled at the 'poop joke' remark.

"You may be right about that," he said, and Eve eyed him for a moment, then nodded slightly, the diva finally opening the driver's side door and slipping inside, Punk doing the same on the passenger side. He looked over at her as she buckled her seatbelt, then prepared to start the car. "It was nice of you. To sign up to do this," Punk finally said, and Eve gave a smile that could only be described as brittle.

"You're forgetting, Punk. I'm not a nice girl anymore."


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer, etc., in part 1. Thanks to those that have reviewed so far.

Part Two

He wasn't used to feeling uncomfortable... But the truth was, he wasn't sure what to say to Eve Torres, not after what had happened Monday night on RAW. And the thing was, it was only Wednesday morning, and since there weren't any Friday live events this week, that meant they were going to be in one another's company all the way from now until they reached the Saturday live events. That meant a solid seventy-two hours in Eve's company. Well, sort of. It wasn't like they were going to be rooming together or anything. It was just that, she was going to be the only person he knew that was close by for this little excursion. And while he appreciated the fact that she wasn't trying to fill the silence with any sort of inane chatter like so many others probably would, he also wasn't looking forward to several very silent car rides over the next few days. Well, not entirely silent. The music was on, and Eve hadn't complained a bit about what he'd tuned the radio to. The only thing she'd done was calmly ask him if he could turn it down a little during a particularly loud song and, in the interest of preventing a fight, he'd done so without saying anything. To be honest, the music had been kind of loud. And now... Now it was getting boring.

Sighing, CM Punk reached out to press the button to start going through the stations, briefly pausing on one or two, but not finding anything he liked... But as it stopped on a Spanish station, he caught sight of Eve out of the corner of his eye, noting the way she sat up a little straighter, and he could swear she was mouthing the words to the song...

"You like this one?" he asked, and she quickly looked over at him, seemingly a bit embarrassed to find that he was watching her. She gave a one-shouldered shrug.

"I know it."

"Yeah. Well enough to sing to it."

"But I also know that you said you get to choose the music and, unless you know Spanish, listening to a Spanish language station probably isn't much fun for you."

"I speak some. Not enough to be able to translate a song as it plays, though," he told her, glancing over at her, finding that she was mouthing along with the words again. He arched a brow as he looked at her. "Obviously, you understand it. You're... Nicaraguan, right?" Punk asked, pretty sure he was right. They'd never really talked about her heritage, but he thought he'd heard her say something about it before.

"Mostly. Some other stuff mixed in. But yes, I'm mostly Latina, specifically Nicaraguan. I still have some relatives that live there. Distant cousins, great aunts and uncles, that sort of thing. I've been there before. Several times," she said, then frowned, like maybe she thought she wasn't supposed to be having this discussion with him, and Punk couldn't help but wonder how it was that the girl he was talking to now was the same one that had been crying in the ring because of John Cena less than forty-eight hours ago. She didn't seem at all like that Eve, or the Eve that had been talking trash with the Bella twins just before the incident with Cena. This... This just seemed like Eve. Which was weird, because he'd expected her to be different. And given the look on her face, maybe she was expecting herself to be different, too.

Tucking that thought away for later, Punk leaned back in his seat, studying her for a moment. "So... What's the singer saying?" he asked, gesturing toward the radio, and Eve laughed.

"You want me to translate."

"If you can."

"I could try, but... The song's so fast, it would be hard to keep up. I speak Spanish, so I understand what she's saying, but... Trying to switch it into English, like, immediately... I could probably translate a slow song as it went, but I'd probably end up completely tongue-tied trying this one." She paused. "It's a good song, though. A happy song. About hanging out with friends and having fun. I could look up the lyrics on the computer later, then translate them."

"No, that's okay. I was just kind of curious what I was listening to. Maybe I'll have you translate a slow song later... Even though that would probably be a cheesy love song or something."

"Undoubtedly," Eve replied, the diva flicking a look at him as a tone sounded on his phone, and CM Punk frowned slightly as he dug it out of his pocket, pulling it out and bringing up the text message he'd just received.

"It's from Kofi," he told her, willing to give the information at least partly because she hadn't been nosy about it and asked him. "That's right... I forgot he signed up for this, too. So that's another guy that signed up." He scanned the text. "He's with Brie Bella. She was starving, so they stopped for a quick bite to eat."

"She was probably running late this morning. From what I remember, when she's running late, she usually skips breakfast," Eve said. "Nice of Kofi to stop so she could get something. Of course, she'd probably just whine the whole way if he didn't so... Wonder who ended up with Nikki?"

"That would be Justin Gabriel, actually. Kofi included that in his text. I'm guessing that Brie texted Nikki or talked to her on the phone or something about it. Which, that would give us the last name to sign up, so... I guess Lilian and Ted are the fourth group."

"They'll probably have fun hanging out," Eve mused, then glanced over at him. "There's supposed to be a brochure for the place they booked us to stay in the glove compartment, if I remember correctly. It should have directions on how to get there, too. I know we're going to the children's hospital first, but it still wouldn't hurt to have an idea of what hotel we're going afterward," the diva said, and Punk gave a nod of agreement before reaching out to pop open the glove box. The information was easy to find since it was in a rather large envelope marked with their names, and Punk pulled it out, snapping the compartment shut again before tearing the envelope open and dumping out the contents in his lap. The brochure landed on top, and he frowned as he picked it up.

"They didn't book us into a hotel, actually," he said after a moment, and Eve shot him a confused look, though she had to keep the look brief since the traffic was picking up and it was more important to keep her eyes on road than it was to look at him at the moment.

"What do you mean? They had to-"

"It's a cabin, actually. According to the note on the brochure, it's a two bedroom cabin. Apparently the nice accommodations are the company's way of thanking us for volunteering to do this or something."

"So we're sharing a cabin," Eve said, then sighed as Punk nodded his head. "Well... This should be interesting."


	3. Chapter 3

disclaimer, etc., in part 1.

Part Three

He hadn't been sure what to expect during the hospital visit.

There were always some kids that knew who they were, others that didn't but, truth be told, even those that had no idea he was in the WWE seemed to be glad to have the visitors. The thing was, though, he wasn't sure what kind of a reception Eve would receive from those that were fans when recent events were considered.

It turned out that he actually needn't have worried.

The teenage boys that were most likely to say something to her seemed to be more than a little tongue-tied by her presence (not surprising, since Eve was a very beautiful woman), and most other kids just thought it was cool to be meeting someone that they'd seen on television. Eve was also a hit with a small group of teenage girls that were in the ward, most of whom didn't watch the WWE but were happy to have a woman to talk to for a little while. When he'd caught sight of them, Eve had been talking to the girls about books and movies and giving out makeup tips upon request. She'd even helped one girl that had recently gotten a wig work on a style for it. Later, he'd seen Eve with some of the younger children, most of whom had no idea who they were, the woman sitting on the floor in the play area that the hospital had for some of the kids that were there, reading a small group of them a story. He'd also caught her playing Barbie dolls with some others.

"So, are you, like, Eve's boyfriend or something?" a voice asked from next to him, and Punk looked over to find one of the teenage girls that Eve had been talking to earlier looking up at him.

He shook his head. "No... We're just coworkers."

"Well, she's really cool, and she deserves a good guy," the teenager informed him before turning and walking away, and Punk frowned slightly as he turned his attention back to Eve... The man quickly realizing that, to any kid that didn't know what had happened on RAW recently, Eve probably did seem amazingly cool. She'd been terrific on this visit, talking to the kids like they were just kids and not sick... Giving hugs and posing for pictures and just being... Well, the Eve he thought he knew.

It was more than a little confusing.

Frowning, Punk glanced at the nearest clock on the wall - he wasn't wearing a watch - the man realizing that he and Eve had already stayed more than an hour over the allotted time. Eve seemed to have realized it as well, because the diva was getting to her feet after giving out one last round of hugs to some of the younger children, the brunette making her way over to where he stood.

"I think our time's up," she said quietly, and he nodded.

"I think it was up at least an hour ago. The kids didn't seem to mind, but I'm sure some of the doctors and nurses are hoping we leave soon," Punk replied, and Eve nodded slightly at that before the two of them made their way over to the head nurse on the ward, saying their goodbyes and their thanks for being allowed to come... The two of them realizing after a moment that the WWE photographer that had been sent to get a few photo ops (with the permission of the children's parents, of course) was long gone, apparently having gotten the shots he'd needed, then leaving. Eve and Punk hadn't even noticed.

As they made their way to the elevator, Eve looked over at him. "It's later than I thought. I... Time got away from me. I apologize if you were ready to go earlier," she said, her behavior immediately becoming infinitely more guarded than it had been while she'd been on the children's ward... Like she'd remembered all of a sudden who she was... Or maybe just who she was supposed to be. For some reason, he thought it would be harder to fake being nice than fake being mean. And Eve had certainly been nice to all of those kids.

He just wasn't sure what that meant.

"Kids can be some of the best fans, actually. More excited to meet you and less pushy than some of the adult ones that refuse to take no for an answer whether it's for pictures or autographs," he said with a shrug. "I had fun."

"I'm pretty sure about half of them didn't know who we were," Eve replied, the hint of a smile on her lips as she spoke, and he shrugged again.

"Maybe not. But they seemed to have fun-"

"I'm sure some of them don't get that many visitors. Family, maybe, but friends? A lot of friends are probably scared to go see them. Scared that they'll get sick, too, or... Just scared to see their friends like that. It's probably especially true for some of the long-term patients," the diva stated, looking sad as she spoke, and Punk just looked at her for a moment, waiting for her to put up the facade again, remembering how she'd reminded him that she wasn't a nice girl anymore earlier that afternoon... And wondering just how true that statement was. Because from what he'd seen... She *was* still a nice girl. Either that, or she'd put on an act for the kids... But she was the one that had volunteered to do this in the first place. She hadn't been assigned to do it, she'd willingly given up her days off...

"Are you okay?" Eve asked suddenly, and Punk realized that he'd just been standing there, frowning, while the elevator had finished its descent and opened its doors. Eve was currently pushing the button to keep the door open as she stood there and waited for him to exit the elevator. Shaking his head slightly as if to clear his thoughts, he did just that.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I was just thinking," he told her, jerking a hand through his hair as he followed her across the lobby and through the exit doors, the pair starting to make their way across the parking lot. He shoved his hands in his pockets as he fell into step beside her. "I guess we ought to get to the cabin."

"Probably a good plan."

"We could stop for dinner first. I'm getting hungry, and I imagine you are, too. We could even go to a real place and sit down and eat," he said, then shrugged. "Unless, of course, you don't want to be seen in public with me."

"Shouldn't that be my line? You not wanting to be seen in public with me?"

"Look around, Eve. I already am out in public with you. It doesn't bother me," he said, frowning as she looked away, and he realized suddenly what it was that she was worried about. That people would recognize them and say something nasty to her. He'd seen the same look on her face before she'd gone into the children's ward, but the worries had been unfounded then. If they went out now, the worries might not be unfounded this time. "It's been a long day. What do you say we go and grab something and take it to the cabin with us?" he suggested, noting the look of relief on her face, the diva nodding a bit.

"That sounds good."

"Okay then," he said, then held out his hand. "And this time, I get to drive."


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer, etc., in part 1.

Part Four

They'd ended up stopping at a nearby grocery store, Eve staying with the car while he'd run inside and grabbed a large vegetarian pizza and some drinks, as well as a few other things, the two of them then heading off to the cabin that they'd been booked into for the next few nights. Eve had been the one to go and check them in, the diva coming back equipped with directions from the main check-in area to the actual cabin that they would be staying in. Once they'd made it there, Eve had turned on the oven to heat so they could cook the pizza, the two of them then quickly dragging in their things. The cabin was two story, both bedrooms and a bathroom upstairs, and Punk had easily handed over the one with the better view to the diva, figuring that she would probably appreciate it more then he would. Once he'd finished dragging his things inside, he'd made his way down the stairs again to the first floor of the cabin, where the kitchen and living area were, the man coming down just in time to find Eve slipping the pizza in the oven.

"Hope you don't mind that I got vegetarian," he said as he approached, Eve jerking slightly at the sound of his voice, the woman obviously not having realized that he was there just yet.

"Not at all. I tend to avoid pizzas with meat anyway. It just gets so greasy," the woman stated, shaking her head slightly, then glancing up at him. "You put me in the room with the better view."

He nodded at that, knowing that, even though she hadn't voiced an actual question, the statement was really meant as one. She didn't understand why it was that he'd given her what was arguably the better room. "I figured you would like it. If you don't-"

"I do. I just... I was surprised, I guess." She cleared her throat. "The pizza needs to cook for fifteen minutes, so... There's some time before the food will be done. If you want to go and settle in or something... I'll call you down when the pizza's ready."

He arched a brow at her. "Trying to get rid of me?" CM Punk questioned, reaching out to open the package of plastic cups he'd bought, filling both of them with ice from the bag he'd grabbed at the grocery store - he hadn't been sure they'd have access to an ice maker at the cabin, but it appeared the fridge had one - before grabbing one of the two-liters of soda that he'd bought.

Eve shook her head. "I... I didn't mean... I-"

"Look, I get that the situation is weird. We're not exactly close, and we're sharing space for a few days. We just have to get through it. The place has two bedrooms, so we have our own space. It's no big deal." He shrugged. "You want some Pepsi?"

The diva glanced over at him. "Sure," she replied, reaching into the refrigerator to grab the small fruit tray he'd bought to go with the pizza. She held it up. "Appetizer? Or whatever?"

He shrugged, reaching out to take it from her, pulling off the plastic wrapping that kept it closed before bringing it to the small kitchen table and putting it down. Turning around, he started to head back to grab the drinks, stopping when he realized that Eve was bringing them, the diva setting them down before sitting in one of the chairs at the table, Punk sitting down across from her. He eyed her for a moment, then reached out, grabbing a slice of apple. "You were really good today," he said, and Eve arched a brow at him, the diva reaching out for a piece of pineapple.

"Excuse me?"

"At the hospital. With all the children. You were really good with them. I think all the teenage girls wanted to be you," he said, and Eve shrugged her shoulders.

"They must not watch the shows then," the diva replied, not meeting his gaze as she reached for another piece of fruit, and he frowned as he watched her pop a grape into her mouth. Still watching her, he reached out, grabbing a few grapes for himself, then leaned back in his chair.

"What's going on with you, Eve?" he wanted to know, and the woman looked over at him, her expression suddenly guarded again, her feelings as hidden from him as her eyes had been that morning behind her sunglasses. He couldn't read a thing from her face.

"I'm not sure I understand what you mean."

He took a sip of his drink before answering. "I mean... I know we've never been really close. We got along, and sometimes we were part of a group that was hanging out, but we weren't the best of friends. That didn't mean I didn't like you. You were cool enough. Then over the past week or so... Things change. Very suddenly. You made a complete about-face when it comes to your behavior. And so far today... I've seen nothing of that girl. The one from the past few shows. I don't get it."

"There's nothing to get," the woman replied, not looking at him, and the fact that she didn't meet his eyes made him wonder just what she was hiding.

"Yeah, somehow I don't believe that. What in the hell is going on with you?" he wanted to know, and Eve finally looked over at him, green eyes flashing.

"You said before that we aren't the best of friends."

"I did."

"Then why in the hell would you think that I would tell you anything? You don't know me. You don't give a damn about me any more than anyone else in that company does," Eve shot at him. "We're not friends. I'm not going to spill all my secrets to you just because we're spending a few days in a cabin together."

"Spills your secrets, huh? Which means there is something else. Something going on," he stated, and the woman shook her head, rising to her feet so abruptly that the chair she was seated in fell to the floor with a clatter.

"My life is none of your business. So give it up," the woman spat at him, turning on her heel to head out of the room, Punk gritting his teeth for a moment, sure he was onto something... Taking a deep breath before calling out to her.

"The pizza's almost ready, Eve. You need to eat," he called out to her, not sure what else to say, not sure how to get her to come back.

"I'm not hungry!" she yelled back as she stomped up the stairs. The next sound he heard was that of her bedroom door slamming.

He sighed, looking down at his drink before reaching for another piece of fruit. "Yeah. That went well."


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer, etc., in part 1.

* * *

Part Five

She didn't come back down to eat.

He'd hoped that once she cooled down, she'd come back and eat; he'd even called out to her to let her know when the pizza was ready, but there had been no response. Eve had stayed upstairs in her room, only stepping out briefly to go into the bathroom, and he'd known from the sounds he'd heard then that the woman had been taking a shower. CM Punk had vaguely considered going upstairs and waiting for her to come out of the bathroom, then trying to make her talk to him, but he knew that would be counterproductive. She wasn't going to talk to him if he tried to force it out of her. She was too stubborn for that. Besides that, if he tried to make her talk, it would just undermine any efforts he made to get her to trust him. And if she was going to tell him whatever the hell was going on with her - because he knew now that there had to be something, something more than what she'd let everyone else see - then she was going to have to trust him. And right now? She sure as hell didn't.

"Damn it," he muttered, the man poking at the piece of pizza that was still left on his plate. He'd eaten alone, staying at the table, hoping that maybe she would come back down and they'd be able to talk some more. He'd have even apologized for trying to push at her, even though it really wasn't his style to say he was sorry. But they had to spend the next couple of days sharing space in this cabin, and alienating her hadn't been a good thing to do. Especially since he really did want answers as to what was behind her sudden behavior change.

Heaving out a sigh, he leaned back in his chair, then jerked slightly at the feeling of his cell phone vibrating in his pocket. Quickly, he pulled it out and checked to see who was calling him, lifting it to his ear as he connected the call. "Hey, man."

"Hey. So, you made it through the first day?" Kofi Kingston said, the man sounding like he was eating while talking, which really wasn't entirely unusual.

"Yeah, pretty much. How about you? Did you end up strangling a Bella twin? You're with Brie, right?"

"Right. And she's not so bad. Especially since I'm not having to spend have my time wondering which one I'm talking to, you know? I can never tell them apart. Don't spend enough time with 'em. But Brie's been okay. I just have to keep her fed, or else she gets cranky. She's taking a shower right now," the man told him, pausing briefly before continuing. "So, uh... How's it going with you? You're with Eve, right?"

"Yup."

"And how's that working out for you?" Kofi wanted to know, and Punk could hear the genuine curiosity in his friend's voice. Not surprising, really. After all, before Eve had pulled her stunt earlier in the week, the diva and Kofi had been pretty good friends. Kofi had been pretty much blindsided by Eve's sudden change in behavior.

"We went to the children's hospital this evening. She was really good with the kids. They all loved her," Punk replied, his mind going over what he'd seen that evening again. She'd truly been the Eve he'd always thought her to be then... Not the girl that had revealed some sort of plot to get to the top by using Cena and Ryder. "I don't get it, man."

"What do you mean?"

"She offered to do this. Everyone that signed up did it voluntarily. Eve, Nikki, Brie, Lilian. They signed up just as much as me and you and Ted and Justin did. Lilian's the only one that I expected. Of the women."

"Well, the Bellas did go overseas in December. They're the two divas that made the trip to visit the troops in the middle east. And last year? Eve's one that went. It was her and Kelly and I think Big Show. And from what I remember back then, Eve's the one that talked Kelly into going. But Eve and Nikki and Brie have always been big on visiting the troops and stuff. And whenever Cena or someone else has someone with them from Make-A-Wish, Eve's always been one to make sure and go and talk to the kid. Not to mention that Eve's the one that teamed up with Foley to do the raffle to benefit RAINN," Kofi stated.

"It doesn't make sense. What she did on Monday. And she's... Most the time, she still seems like... Eve. You know, the one that we know."

"Have you asked her about it?"

"Yeah. Didn't go well."

"Oh, really?" Kofi questioned, not asking for details, though Punk knew he wanted them. Sighing, he went ahead and spilled it. After all, if there was anyone in the WWE he could trust, it was Kofi Kingston.

"I pushed too hard. Tried to get her to tell me what in the hell is going on with her. She didn't appreciate it. She's been upstairs ever since. Wouldn't even come down to eat dinner. I thought about bringing her up a plate, but I figure she won't even bother opening the door."

"If she wants to avoid you and your questions, then she'll probably wait until she thinks you're in bed for the night or something, then come down and eat. Well, if she comes down at all. Girl's always lecturing about skipping meals and how unhealthy it can be, though, so if she takes her own advice, she'll come down to eat something."

"Just not when I'm around," Punk said on a sigh, jerking a hand through his hair. "I think something's going on with her, Kofi. I really do. I'm just not sure what it is."

"It's a mystery," Kofi concurred, hesitating for a moment before continuing. "Be careful, man."

"Excuse me?"

"You push her, then she's likely to either clam up totally or push back. Or, you know, kick you in the nuts or something. Eve's never been a pushover. It's part of what I like about her."

"I know. Well... Anyway. I should go. Clean up the mess from dinner," he said. Of course, in reality, there wasn't much mess since all they'd had was a take and bake pizza and a mini fruit tray. It wasn't like any real cooking had been involved. "Good luck dealing with Brie."

"Eh... She's not so bad. Good luck with Eve," Kofi said, and Punk sighed.

"Thanks," he muttered, for once not tossing out his 'luck is for losers' line. Because right now? When it came to finding out what was up with Eve, he kind of felt that he might need all the luck he could get.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer, etc., in part 1.

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Part Six

He sat quietly in the living area that was in the cabin, just a single lamp on as he looked at the book in his hands, though his mind was more on the woman upstairs than it was on what he was reading. Perhaps that was why he hadn't turned more than a page or two in all the time he'd been sitting there. It had been hours since Eve had stormed upstairs without eating dinner, the woman only coming out of her room long enough to shower, and he'd figured that trying to force her to talk to him then was a bad idea. So he'd left her alone then, still hoping that she'd come back out on her own, but she hadn't. And now here he was, sitting in a chair in the corner of the living room pretending to read a book while Eve was upstairs and more than likely asleep. CM Punk knew that he should probably go upstairs to his own room and try to sleep, but he knew that it was unlikely that he would manage to get more than a few hours. He didn't have the best sleeping habits anyway, and he had so much on his mind tonight that he figured getting to sleep would be even more difficult than usual.

"Damn it," he muttered softly, snapping the book in his hands shut and putting it down on the small table that the lamp sat on, the man reaching out to turn the lamp off and standing up, taking a moment to let himself get used to the darkness before heading for the stairs, careful to sidestep any furniture that he could see. He was concentrating so hard on not tripping that he missed the sounds of a door quietly opening, the soft footsteps going down the stairs... It wasn't until he literally ran head-long into Eve Torres that he had any idea that she was there, the two of them falling in a heap, him on top of her, his arms automatically going around her, one around her waist, one around her shoulders, his hand sliding up to the back of her head, and it was because of that automatic gesture on his part that Eve didn't crack her head on one of the steps.

"Holy crap," he muttered when he was able to catch his breath, the man all too aware of the female form beneath his body. Damn, but Eve had some nice curves.

Sliding his arms from around her, he braced himself on the steps, then shifted away from her, ending up on his knees at the foot of the stairs. Reaching up, he groped for a light switch, flipping it on, then looked over at Eve. She was carefully sitting up from her position sprawled on the stairs, rubbing at her elbow, which had probably slammed into one of the steps on the way down.

"Ow," she managed, and he winced, starting to reach out to her, then stopping himself when he saw her flinch almost imperceptibly. It was clear that she still wasn't thrilled with him... Something he should have realized since the diva had waited until now to come downstairs. Eve had probably figured he had to be in bed by now.

"I'm sorry," Punk said softly, the apology both for knocking her over and for pushing at her earlier. "You okay?"

"A little banged up. I'll be fine," the woman stated, still rubbing at her elbow. She frowned as she looked over at him. "How's your hand?" At his blank look, the diva elaborated. "It had to hit the steps pretty hard. When you were protecting my head."

"Better my hand than your head," he replied, looking down at it. It hurt, of course, but it would be fine. "I'm okay."

"You might want to put some ice on it, just in case," Eve told him, the woman rising to her feet, not realizing until she stood up that doing so would put her just inches away from Punk... And that while she was standing up, he was still on his knees. She blinked in surprise at the position, then quickly stepped around him, Punk making it easy for her by shifting to the side as well. Wincing slightly, the man rose to his feet, trailing after Eve as she made her way into the kitchen.

"You should probably put some ice on your elbow, then, too. If it's bugging you as much as it seems to be," he said, arching a brow as Eve rubbed at the body part in question again, the diva quickly dropping her hand when she saw him looking.

"It's fine."

"Sure it is. Just like I'm sure you didn't wait until the middle of the night to come downstairs in an effort to avoid me," the WWE champion stated, and Eve scowled at him, starting to turn and head for the door, but since he was closer to it, he was able to easily head her off. Sighing, he led her to one of the chairs in the room and urged her to take a seat. "Sit down. Eat something."

"I'm not hungry."

"Then why did you come down here?" he countered, sighing as the diva averted her gaze, refusing to meet his eyes. Shaking his head, he grabbed a bottle of water from the refrigerator and put it down in front of her. "You didn't have any dinner. You should probably eat something."

"It's two in the morning. I shouldn't eat anything at all."

"Yeah, but you skipped dinner. You're probably starving. Eat something," he instructed, grabbing what was left of the fruit tray he'd bought and putting it on the table in front of her. Taking another chair, he pulled it around so that he could straddle it, resting his arms along the back of it, resting his chin on his arms. "I'm sorry for pushing at you earlier."

Eve arched a brow as she popped a slice of apple in her mouth. After chewing and swallowing, she commented. "CM Punk actually apologizing for something. Alert the media."

"I apologize when I feel it's warranted. I pushed you for answers that I have no right to push for. We're not exactly friends."

"That's stating the obvious-"

"But we used to get along, Eve. And we did okay today, too. At least until I screwed it up at dinner. And the thing is... We still have more than forty-eight hours together. We may as well make the best of it, you know? So... I won't push. We'll just... Try and get along until Saturday comes around and we're back on the road with the company."

"I can do that."

"Okay. But Eve... If you do want to talk to somebody..."

She arched a brow at him. "Don't hold your breath."

"Yeah, that's what I figured."


End file.
